Encouraging people to think more positively about themselves is a central aim of the Pacific Institute's personal development programmes. Michael Ostinelli is project director in Ireland for the US-based institute which specialises in developing training programmes for personal, professional and organisational change.

A human resources consultant who worked for many years in personnel roles in manufacturing industry before setting up his own company, Ostinelli now works with companies, community groups, the education sector and semi-State organisations to help people in changing and improving their lives.

"There is no magic formula to the programmes," says Ostinelli, a former president of the Irish Institute of Training and Development. "They focus on helping people to change their situations by building strength in the individual and encouraging people to realise how good they are.

"There are a number of key concepts and modules which we work through and in so doing people discover that they have the power within them to take charge of their future. We provide them with the tools of change, explain how to use them and give it time to sink in."

Ostinelli both delivers programmes personally and trains facilitators who can then take the programmes to their individual communities or organisations. A number of different programmes are available to cover different needs. For example, the STEPS - Steps To Excellence for Personal Success - programme is aimed at men and women seeking work, those in job clubs, women returners and those on community employment programmes - it is often integrated into a wider training programme such as a FAS return-to-work course.

Investment in Excellence is a training programme designed for those in the corporate sector and those working in organisations and the education profession and it can be conducted for groups in-house or individuals can attend one of the open courses which Ostinelli runs at different times during the year.

"Rapid change is here to stay and it creates a need for us all to become more innovative and more productive if we are to survive," says Ostinelli. "This course can help individuals and organisations to achieve measurable goals, to become more team-focused and to sustain high levels of motivation."

In addition to the programmes targeted at adults, two courses are aimed at younger age groups.

Breakthrough is a programme aimed specifically at Youthreach groups.

Pathways to Excellence is for 16- to 20-year-olds in the mainstream school/education system - it aims to help young people to feel more confident and better about themselves, to improve their ability to get on with people and to get to grips with studying and taking exams.

"The programmes all use the same basic concepts but they are structured in different ways to meet the needs of specific groups," says Ostinelli. "The outcome is broadly the same in that people are helped to deal with change, they learn how to consider new ideas and options, to recognise barriers which keep them from achieving goals and their selfesteem is increased which in turn enhances performance."

A straw poll of women who had been through the STEPS programme as part of a FAS return-to-work course drew an enthusiastic response from those questioned by E&L.

"When you've been at home for years rearing a family your confidence in yourself seems to go down the drain," said one Dublin participant. "I found the course helped me to re-find the confident person I used to be. I needed something to boost my self-esteem and something to give me the courage to go looking for a job with the right kind of positive attitude. The course did this for me."

Contact Point: Michael Ostinelli - phone (01) 496 5962, fax (01) 497 6070.